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Overview
Probably no theologian has exercised so profound an influence on Catholic theology during the last half century as Karl Rahner. Patrick Burke examines the structure of dialectical analogy as it appears in each of the major themes of Rahner's theology-as an indispensable key to the correct interpretation of his thought. He also exposes a tension within the system that needs to be addressed if the complex balance of Rahner's vision is to be fully understood
Synopsis
Probably no theologian has exercised so profound an influence on Catholic theology during the last half century as Karl Rahner. Although the vast majority of his work consisted in individual articles and lectures, Rahner's theology is rightly recognized as a theological system because of the fundamental unity that runs throughout his writings. The key to this unity of approach lies in a foundational structure of thought which is revealed in the philosophical works with which he began his intellectual career and which is apparent throughout his theological development.
Through his early analysis of Thomistic epistemology, Rahner uncovered a fundamental structure in human knowing. According to this structure human knowledge consists in a dynamic oscillation between the horizon of all being and the sensible singular, within which dynamic movement there is always and simultaneously a static conceptualizing moment. But, according to Rahner, being is knowing and so through the same analysis the structure of man is revealed as similar: Man himself is the dynamic oscillating mid-point between God and the categorical world, but also and always a pure static nature. This structure, of dynamic oscillation within which there is always and simultaneously a static conceptualizing moment, is basic to Rahner's understanding of reality. Burke calls it "dialectical analogy" because through it Rahner can constantly oscillate between unifying dynamism and conceptual distinction, and therefore unite dialectically, while still holding in distinction the traditional antinomies of Christian thought; God and the world, spirit and matter, grace and nature. However, despite its originality and brilliance, there is a foundational weakness in Rahner's system. The role of the concept in his epistemology is weak. Because, within his analysis, the passive intellect is reduced to a mere name, the concept seems to be imposed on the system and therefore relativized within the dominant dynamic Schwebe, which constitutes human being and knowing. Because of the fundamental unity of Rahner's philosophy and his theology it is unsurprising that this epistemological weakness is reflected in his metaphysics and in his theology. It is this weakness, which accounts for the progressively stronger emphasis on the dynamic unifying side of his thought in his later works. It is also the reason why so many commentators have pushed Rahner's system further than Rahner himself either went or would have gone. In this book Burke examines the structure of dialectical analogy as it appears in each of the major themes of Rahner's theology showing that it is an indispensable hermeneutical key to the correct interpretation of his thought. But he also exposes a very real tension within the system, which needs to be addressed by Rahnerian scholars if the complex and profound balance of Rahner's theological vision is not to be endangered or even lost.About the Author
Patrick Burke is a parish priest of Our Lady and St. Ninian's Bannockburn, Scotland and chaplain to Stirling University. He is also Editor of Faith, a bi-monthly theological and pastoral review, published in the United Kingdom.